App Store Lessons: why is my app taking so long to review?

Why do some apps take longer to review for App Store than others? Ars …

Despite all paranoia to the contrary, I sincerely believe that Apple does not engage in "pocket vetos." That is, I doubt that it targets any individual or company to deny them a place in App Store by sitting on their submissions and keeping them from getting reviewed. Most applications now finish the review process in just a few days if not a week or two. And all applications appear to get reviewed eventually, although sometimes it's for very large values of "eventually."

Apple seems to have added staff to its App Store division recently, allowing those who review the apps to handle the influx of applications that continue to be submitted. With increased staff, however, comes the need for training and, presumably, easier-to-follow checklists for initial app reviews. Based on numerous discussions with developers, it seems that Apple has a standard first-tier review process that assesses submissions to see if they raise any flags: does the application use profanity, does it mention any beta features, are all the parts of the application functional, and so forth.

Most of these flaggable criteria are straightforward and will produce an instant rejection with an SDK citation when transgressed. If an app passes the checklist and sails through what one can only presume is automated scanning for malware and private framework use, you'll generally receive a green light within about one business week of submission.

It's applications that raise a flag that take more time to process. If your application has not received a rejection or approval within five business days, you may have been flagged for some reason. You'll have to hold on and wait for the next stage, which is usually submission feedback. You may also receive an e-mail stating that your application is taking longer to review than expected.

An Application Submission Feedback letter often instructs you on how to fix a submission to comply with the App Store. This may involve updating your marketing text or removing a disallowed item from your application. Apple is basically telling you how to proceed without being rejected. So go ahead, do what they say, and reply to the e-mail you were sent (it contains your Follow-up number) when you have complied.

Sometimes you'll also receive a personal call from a Dev Wrangler (no, that's not the official title) who will explain things to you in person. Dev Wranglers seem to be hired for their patience and people skills and appear to be deployed when a personal touch might help. These personnel were involved during the recent Emoji take-downs and for handling issues with charitable donation apps.

In the last couple of months, developers have reported an increasing number of stories about applications that have been "wrongly" flagged. That is, they have received Application Submission Feedback letters for issues that don't really make sense. With more apps to check, it seems that reviewers are erring more and more on the side of caution, flagging apps that might not be out of compliance.

These extra flags have increased the general time it takes for apps to be approved on the whole and added extra work onto the developer's plate to demonstrate that their applications are compliant. The recent Tweetie brouhaha is a perfect example. It was rejected for displaying objectionable content that was produced on Twitter, not from within the application. Once flagged and rejected, Apple responded relatively quickly after the developer made a fuss and the app was soon accepted.

Sometimes, however, you sit and wait without a letter and without any indication of progress for weeks or months. This seems to happen when your case is particularly complex or when Apple might not yet have a policy about a situation that you have raised. In this situation, bigger is generally better.

If your company is large, important, and with clout, you can usually pester your representative to find out what is happening at a personal level. Apple returns calls to bigger corporations. If you are an individual developer, you can send e-mails, all of which will likely be ignored.

Eventually, Apple does seem to respond to all application submissions and I have not heard of any app going longer than four or five months without contact. However, for those developers, that wait can be a business plan death sentence. Apple does not provide a ticketing system and you cannot check the progress of your app in review. So while Apple might not employ the "pocket veto" approach, for some applications the result is the same.